College Students Won’t Hookup On The First Date, But We Will At Parties

A study found that while college students usually didn’t hookup on the first date they were perfectly willing to shack up with some strange at a party.

According to Live Science, “In the study, nearly 300 college students were asked to explain the behavior of the individuals in the following scenario: a man and a woman meet at a party, and have sex that night. Later, they go on a date, which ends with just a kiss. Although the question was open-ended, many students gave similar answers, the researchers said. They said it was normal or acceptable to have sex at a party, but not on a first date, even if the couple had previously hooked up and had sex.”

What can be concluded from this disparity? Well, as researcher Sinikka Elliott, an assistant professor at North Carolina State University’s department of sociology & anthropology suggests, it’s all about setting. For many, different settings and scenarios present themselves with a different set of rules.

A date implies an interest in a potential relationship. The stakes are higher and so people are much less likely to jump the gun and give up the goods when they want to be taken seriously. A party however is seen as conducive to hooking up. There’s alcohol, there’s excitement and there’s the potential of meeting a stranger and never really having to see them again. The stakes are lower.

The study is pretty interesting in how we behave differently or think we should in different contexts, however because the study was conducted in only school, we shouldn’t make any broad generalizations about college students.